The Dawson County Courier carried the following
story on January 28, 1937 Volume 7Four Lamesa Residents Killed by Caliche Slide;Three die Instantly; One dies Saturday

Five Lamesans, members of the maintenance
department of the Texas State Highway department had just finished
their lunches on last Friday, January 22, and were sitting around a
fire they had built to warm by. They had been working in a strip
caliche pit on the Tom Kellam place six miles south of town on the
Big Spring highway. Building their fire on the north side of the pit
to ward off a cold north wind, they sat under a slight ledge of a six
foot bank to relax a few moments before returning to their work in
the afternoon. Suddenly and without warning the ledge gave away,
hurling hundreds of pounds of caliche on the small group, killing
three outright and injuring a fourth so that he passed away Saturday
afternoon. The fifth and surviving member of the group escaped
without sustaining any permanent injury.

The dead were: N. G. Scott, 60 a long time resident
of Lamesa, whose back was broken by the impact of a large boulder,
and who had been a member of the highway department about five years.

Walter Breeding, 43, probably the victin of
internal injuries was pinned over the fire and suffocated by the
smoke, a member of the department for four years.

Tom Hailey, 58, part time worker, was crushed by
the rocks and killed instantly.

Willie Emmett Busby, 43, received internal
injuries, when a large boulder pinned him to the ground, and although
he was brought to a local hospital where he underwent an operation in
an effort to save him, the injuries proved fatal and he passed away
Saturday afternoon.

Victor Crawley, the other workman, was sitting
directly against the bank and the cave-in pitched over his body,
although loose dirt pinned his legs and feet so that it was several
minutes before he could extricate himself to give aid to his
companions. He received painful bruises and shock, which still
confines him to his home, but no serious injuries were received by
him. As soon as Crawley got himself free he went to work to rescue
the four trapped men.

Realizing that Busby was the only one who was not
then oast human aid, he tried to pry the large rock off Busby, but it
was too large for one man to move, he started to the highway tohail
some passerby. At this moment Jap Randle and Jack Phinizy of Lamesa
were returning from a call to Ackerly, and seeing Crawley running to
the road, stopped to see what had happened. They sent Crawley to
Lamesa in their car while they set about to get the injured men out
of the pile of caliche and dirt. The rock that held Busby to the
ground had to be broken with a crowbar before he could be gottn out.
He was then carried to the highway where a car stopped and he was
sent in to the hospital. Randle and Phinizy remained and continued
the rescue work until all the men were dug out and brought to Lamesa
in an ambulance.

Hundreds of people have viewed the place of the
cave-in since the accident and marvel at how comparatively small it
appears, to have been the cause of the most tragic accident which has
ever happened in Dawson County. Various explanations have been given
for the mysterious slide, most plausible being that the extreme cold
weather had frozen the ground solidly and the heat of the noon day
sun augmented by the fire which had been built by the workmen, had
caused the ground to expand and crack under the weight of the
overhanging ledge.

Breeding Buried in Callahan County The body of
Walter Breeding was taken to Cross Plains Friday night, where funeral
services were held Saturday, and burial was made in the Cottowood
cemetery near that place. Breeding, who was unmarried, is survived by
his father, H. L. Breeding, and three brothers: Leonard Breeding of
Lamesa, J.M. Breeding of Lamesa, and Arvie Breeding of Cross Plains;
Also three sisters, Mrs. F. A. Oglesby of Cross Plains, Mrs. B. B.
Jones of Cross Plains and Mrs. S. M. Scrivinge of Dayton, Texas

Hailey Funeral Saturday Funeral services for Tom
Hailey, victom of the caliche pit diaster, were held Saturday
afternoon at 2:30 at the First Baptist church in Lamesa. Rev. E. F.
Cole, pastor, conducted the services. Burial was in the Lamesa
cemetery. Mr Hailey had been a member of the Baptist church for 24
years. He is survived by his wife, Mrs. Ora Hailey, and three
daughters, Mrs. Dock Gillispie and Mrs. Elbert Brown of Lamesa, and
Mrs. Rufus Aten of Kermit, Texas.

Scott Buried Saturday N. G. Scott was laid to rest
Saturday afternoon in the Lamesa cemetery following funeral services
which were held in the Lamesa Church of Christ at 3:15, Minister J.
C. Foster conducted the services. Mr. Scott leaves a widow and three
sons to mourn his passing, Mrs. Anna Belle Scott, Lamesa, Loy Scott
of Lovington, NM, Linnie Scott, Lamesa, and Aaron Scott, Big Spring.
Also his parents Mr and Mrs G.W. Scott and three brothers and four sisters.

Legion Funeral Given Busby. The final chapter in
Dawson County's tragic accident of last Friday, was ended Monday
afternoon when the remains of Emmett Busby was laid to rest in the
Lamesa cemetery beneath a bank of beautiful floral offerings which
attested to the high esteem in which he was held by his many friends
in Lamesa. Funeral services were held in the First Methodist church
at 2:30 p.m. with Rev. M. m. Beavers in charge of the services,
assisted by Rev. E. F. Cole. A male quartette composed of Owen
Taylor, Essie More, A. J. McDaniel, and Tom Barron sang "Rock Of
Ages". Members of the local post of the American Legion escorted
the cortege to the cemetery where he was buried with military honors.
Willie Emmett Busby was born in Atlanta, GA, in 1893. He had been a
resident of Lamesa for several years. In 1927 he married a Lamesa
girl, Miss Nell Barrington, who survives him. He had been a mamber of
the Methodist church since youth. He was a member of the masonic and
Odd Fellows lodges and of the American Legion. Besides his widow,
Mrs. Nell Busby, the deceased leaves five brothers to mourn his
untimely death. They are L.L. Busby, of O'Donnell, H. G. Busby, of
Greenville, Texas; C. F. Busby of Dallas; L. C. Busby of
Farmersville, Texas, and J. A. Busby of Celeste, Texas

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